C5Alive General Category > C5 Socialising

Xantia - Roman God of Profiteering

(1/3) > >>

danny7147:
How do you fleece people? Simple, build complicated components that can't be replicated or repaired and then charge through the nose for them. Sinclair C5 pod?

No... Citroen Xantia suspension.

My beloved Xantia failed it's mot on a leaking hydrolastic suspension pump. No sane engineer will touch them. Citroen said merrily "Of course we stock them! £600!".

But then I called a local guy who suggested "Well, have you tried replacing the seal?" ... No, because Citroen don't sell them. "Actually, they do, they just don't tell you. Ask for this part number..."

75p later, £5 and a tea to fit, and it flew through the test ;)

Gotta love those dealers...

Karl:
..you are having as much fun as we did with our local SMART /Mercedes Benz dealers  ;D

That's why my good lady now drives a Toyota Yaris  ;)

KarlG:
Microsoft did much the same thing with the original rubber ball for their mouse, but this time it was listed but they claimed it wasn't being offered as a replacement. Later I read in an American computer mag that a reporter had sussed out that they existed but microsoft was hiding them.

C'T (a German computer mag) investigated a claim that Dell were charging €350 to repair a laptop hinge, Dell quoted that they charge or were charging a flat rate of €350 per repair.  :o :o :o

mhurt:
My step-father once took his car to the Nissan dealer a few years ago, who told him that a pipe deep in the engine needed replacing, which had to be ordered & specially made from Japan, and that it would take 2 men a week to strip down the engine, replace the pipe and rebuild - quoting him £2500.

He bought a Haines manual, a generic rubber hose from a local parts dealer for £3, and fitted it himself in a day. Total cost - £13.

Retro Andy:
Hello Danny, I am the service manager at a Citroen main dealer and have worked with them for almost twenty years, I would be more than happy to help and answer any questions regarding your Xantia if you ever need.

Retro Andy.

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page